What Has Been Happening

Well I am finally getting a chance to update you on how things have been going over the past few months. I am hoping to update more often now - I know I said that before but now that we are all settled and Christmas is over and I have brain dumped everything over the last few months, I think it will be easier for me to update you on the little coming and goings of our family. It is really hard to believe that today has been three months since I walked out of the orphanage with little M. It seems so long ago. Below this post is a post that will update you on what happened from our last day in Astrakhan until we got home if you are interested. It is lengthy but there are pictures.

Little M is doing so amazingly well! I think that he has adjusted so well. He gets along with the kids very well. He loves his big sis and she loves to baby him. He runs around the house following his big brothers as they burn off energy – At first, there was some jealousy from little M when one of the other kids would sit on my lap, he would want to push them off and get on my lap Now he just climbs up besides me and wants me to hug him too.

The dog issue is much better. Poor Rocky was very jumpy for awhile but us better now. He still keeps his eye out for M but now it seems that he only gets stepped on by accident.

SLEEPING has been going great since about week three home. At first, I would try to rock him to sleep but since he would not stay in my lap when I sat down, I would have to rock him standing, I also had to make sure that we were in a dark room or else he would spend all his time looking around at things. After about a week of doing that twice a day for 10-15 mintues both my feet and back where killing me. So I started just putting him in his crib and let him cry for about 5 minutes(checking in on him every minute to ensure that I was there). After a few days, I then felt bad, so I would lay in the bed in his room until he fell asleep. One night, I could not lay down and he was fine and has been great ever since. He sleeps through the night for about 11.5 hours and 1.5 to 2 hours in the afternoon. He is in a room by himself because when he was in with one of his brothers, it messed up everyones sleep schedule. He does so much better in a room by himself – I guess each child is just different.

EATING started out great and now, even though it is difficult, it is typical of a two year old. He eats most things now except tomatoe sauce. Somedays he is more picky then others but he has gained about 3 pounds since we have been home so I think he is doing good.

HEATHWISE he is also doing great. No concerns with any of the doctors we have seen. We have had difficultly getting a good hearing check because he always seems to have fluid behind his eardrum. It is no infected but the doctor recently put him on antibiotic to see if we can get it cleared up. He has also had a horrible runny nose since I picked him up from the orphanage so the meds seem to be helping with that too. He still had not grown any heightwise and I am hoping that will kick in soon. He wears a 24 month top and 12 month pants. We joke and say that he is part Corgy because his legs are so short.

SPEECH: The only big concern we are dealing with is his speech. He was very dealyed in speech only speaking a few words( that we knew of) in Russian, so after about a month of talking to him in Russian and English, we slowly cut out the Russian and only now use English. He has picked up english so well and you can see how eager he is to learn know words. He often brings things to me so I can tell him what they are. But there are several sounds that he simply can not make so some words are just not recognizable and many sound the same. But each week he is making progress. A few weeks ago he started saying his first phrase on his own “I'm coming!” And last week he started with the toddler babbling. Before he would just say words in response to seeing things but now he will play and just babble on and on. We are on a waiting list for a speech therapist and will get him in the school system once he turns three. But we are going to more forward with our own speech therapist at the beginning of the year.

EMOTIONS: He has also really advanced with being affectionate. At first, he really never hugged and we had to teach him how to kiss. He never really liked being held either ( that is still the case but then he just does not sit still very long either – He's two). Fast forward three months, he is a very caring person. If one of the kids is crying he will go over and hug them. He loves to come over and rub my back and arm and even after he gets out of a time out – he immediately comes over to give me a hug( like is is telling me that he is sorry).

CONCERNS: The only issue that is a little concern to me is that he doesn't really know a stranger. We will be standing in line, and he just has to go up and touch people. I also have to be careful because he will let others pick him up. Most of the time, though, he will immediately turn away and want to come to me – which is good. There are a few people that he feels very comfortable with, my Mom and his Sunday school teachers. It is really hard after you have read all the attachement books on what you should and should not allow. It comes down to the child and the family and you just have to go with your gut.

I have to say that even though things are going well with M. It has been hard. I knew it would be hard but it still doesn't make things more palatable when you are going thorugh it. The things that took me the most by surprise was my feelings. I knew that it would not be love at first sight but with all our visits at the orphanage, he would just melt my heart. However, we never had a honeymoon period as others have mentioned because he started testing me during the last visits in the orphanage. So when we got back to a normal life, I have to be honest, he did not “feel” like my son. There is just something missing with him that I have with my other kids. Others say that it will come and I know that it will but I wanted to let others out there know that things are not perfect and that is ok too. However I feel at times, I am glad that we have M in our lives and that all the frustration of the paperwork, the wait and the adjustment will result in many blessings from God for both M and us.

Not to end a post on a downer – I will leave you with some pictures over the past few months :

My little Bumble Bee
My favorite present

You are saying that I CAN rip this paper?